Andy Lopez Family Comments on Decision Not To Charge Deputy

Sonoma County District Attorney Jill Ravitch's "disheartening" decision not to file charges against the sheriff's deputy who fatally shot 13-year-old Andy Lopez in October has left the Lopez family feeling the teen "had been killed again," the family's attorney said.

Ravitch announced her decision Monday and released a 52-page report on the fatal Oct. 22 incident and the subsequent investigation by Santa Rosa and Petaluma police.

Ravitch called the fatal shooting "tragic" and "a painful, painful chapter in the history of Sonoma County."

[Previous: Expert Says Andy Lopez Impaired By Marijuana When Shot By Deputy.]

Ravitch, who was re-elected to a second term in June, said Deputy Erick Gelhaus "fired his weapon in response to what he honestly and reasonably believed was an imminent threat of death to himself and others.

As such, he was lawfully acting in defense of himself or others, and no basis for seeking criminal charges exists." Gelhaus believed the airsoft BB gun Lopez was carrying on Moorland Avenue southwest of Santa Rosa was an AK-47 rifle and he ordered Lopez once or twice to drop the weapon, according to Ravitch's report.

As Lopez turned toward Gelhaus and Deputy Michael Schemmel, who both took cover behind the partially open doors of their patrol car, the barrel of the rifle rose upward, according to the report. Gelhaus fired eight rounds, seven of which struck Lopez, who died at the scene.

Schemmel, a former Marin County Sheriff's Office employee who joined the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office in September 2013, did not fire his weapon. Protesters have called on Ravitch to arrest, jail and prosecute Gelhaus for murder.

Gelhaus, a 24-year sheriff's employee and a firearms instructor, was placed on paid administrative leave after the shooting and returned to administrative duty work on Dec. 10.

Arnoldo Casillas, who represents the Lopez family in a civil rights violation lawsuit related to the shooting, said Ravitch's conclusion that Gelhaus feared for his life is "impossible to accept" and a "mockery of justice."

"No reasonable officer in such circumstances could believe he was encountering anything but a teenager with a toy gun on a sunny afternoon in a residential area," Casillas said in a written statement.

"This cowardly political decision sends the tacit message that law enforcement officials who use excessive force will not suffer meaningful consequences and instead will enjoy immunity from prosecution," Casillas said.

The Lopez family will petition the U.S. District Court to immediately lift the stay of the civil proceedings, Casillas said.

The stay was in effect pending Ravitch's review of the shooting investigation and any criminal liability Gelhaus might face.

The Lopez family also will urge the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office to conduct an impartial investigation of the incident, Casillas said.

Casillas said the Lopez family is asking the Sonoma County community to be peaceful in any protests related to the district attorney's decision.

A demonstration is planned for 1 p.m. today at the Sonoma County Superior Courthouse in Santa Rosa, where the district attorney's office is located, and another demonstration is planned for 1 p.m. Saturday in Old Courthouse Square in downtown Santa Rosa.

Previous:  

Expert Says Andy Lopez Impaired By Marijuana When Shot By Deputy.
Protesters Rally After DA Says No Charges Against Deputy In Shooting of Andy Lopez.

Sonoma County DA To Announce No Charges in Andy Lopez Shooting.

--Bay City News